Hockey East Puck Bag

Not so surprisingly, even the women's college hockey world has a cause to be touched by the recent passing of longtime Senator Ted Kennedy. Senator Kennedy -whose tenure began before five of the current Hockey East head coaches were even born- was credited with blocking repeat attempts to cut funding for women's athletics back in the 1980s. However direct or indirect, his efforts in that department allowed for a rapid expansion in women's hockey all through the 1990s and into the new century.

And now, in another four-plus months, the first NCAA women's hockey game ever conducted outdoors shall take place at none other than Fenway Park, one of the late senator's favorite downtime domains. There stands a good chance that, come the historic January 8 face-off, he will be watching from the ultimate skybox.

Speaking of Hockey East at Fenway, for all of the understandable talk of that revolutionary event, it has been quickly forgotten that, on the same afternoon, the Connecticut Huskies are scheduled to lock twigs with Pittsburgh-based Robert Morris at Mellon Arena. Granted, there will be a roof over everyone's head, but it is a uniquely shaped roof at that and it is still the home of the reigning Stanley Cup champions.

And, incidentally, since stadium ponds are hard to come by for anybody, perhaps some future big barn games should be a priority for commissioner Joe Bertagna and his three counterparts from the CHA, ECAC, and WCHA. Couldn't you see UConn staging a game at Hartford's XL Center or the Providence Friars holding one at the Dunkin Donuts Center -the respective homes of their better-known basketball peers? Or, better yet, Boston College and Boston University at the Garden?

It could happen.

Speaking of the BC-BU rivalry, maybe you have caught on to this ice chip of irony: BC and the United States are both symbolized by a bald eagle. And now, the likes of Kelli Stack and Molly Schaus are putting off their senior years at Chestnut Hill to join in on Team USA's Olympic tour. Meanwhile, both BU and Canada pride themselves on a color combination of red and white, and it just so happens that Terriers Tara Watchorn and Jenelle Kohanchuk are both keeping their blades sharp with the Canadian U22 team.

One other Olympic note: for two full weeks in the second half of February, the Bruins will be idled on account of the break, meaning the New England Sports Network ought to have a little air space to spare. Included in that time frame will be 10 WHEA regular season contests plus the 3-versus-6 and 4-versus-5 playoff bouts.

Presumably, NESN already plans to continue with its traditional Friday night men's Hockey East broadcasts, but what will it do with the rest of its vacant time? Something else, perhaps, for Boss Bertagna to think about while he presumably continues to pursue a TV deal for the outdoor game?

The first league contest on tap for the coming season -which is now a little less than five weeks away- has Maine visiting Providence on October 2, and there's a fairly good chance the goaltending card will pit Black Bear rookie Brittany Ott against the Friars' sophomore Genevieve Lacasse. Just 18 months prior to this game, those two consituted the backstopping tandem for a Detroit Little Caesar's U19 club that fell one win shy of a national title.

Finally, with three apiece, Northeastern's 2009-10 roster boasts just as many Californinans as it does New Englanders (all three of them hail from Massachusetts). Meanwhile, Vermont is the team slated to have the most rostered New Englanders with seven, yet still has enough room for the league's only ambassadors from Arizona, Colorado, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Wyoming.